Getty Images A DWTS champ got into fights with Derek Hough during her season.
Season 8 “Dancing With the Stars” champion was one of the youngest to ever compete on the show — and win. Shawn Johnson was paired up with Mark Ballas for her first go on in the ballroom and the two ended up taking home the coveted Mirror Ball Trophy.
Johnson was then asked if she’d like to return for the All-Stars season three years later, and she agreed. This time around, however, Johnson teamed up with Derek Hough.
On the July 19, 2023, episode of Hannah Brown’s “Better Tomorrow” podcast, Johnson discussed the differences in her two coaches and admitted that she and Hough got into some pretty serious fights during their rehearsals.
Here’s what you need to know:
Shawn Johnson Calls Derek Hough a ‘Pure Genius’ in the Dance Studio
Although Johnson did want to dance with Ballas again during All Stars, she says she really liked the idea of dancing with a new partner because it was a challenge — one that she was totally up for.
However, it did take some time for Johnson to get used to Hough’s teaching methods.
“Derek in the dance studio? I’m still so close to him. He’s like another brother,” Johnson began. “I’ve just explained it as pure genius. And it’s so hard to keep up with because his brain works so fast and it’s creating and just, I think he is able to see so much more than we are when he’s creating something,” she continued.
“And I remember so many times we would get in arguments because he’d be like, ‘why aren’t you doing it? Why aren’t you remembering the steps?'” she recalled, telling Hough that he didn’t actually teach her the steps on many occasions. “It’s in your brain. You forgot to teach me,” she said.
And while Johnson admits that her routines with Hough were “very hard,” they did have an incredible season. In fact, one of their dances got some seriously high praise from judge Bruno Tonioli.
“This is incredible. The best dance I’ve seen in 15 seasons … I’m never going to forget this,” he said, according to People magazine.
Shawn Johnson & Derek Hough Finished All Stars in Second Place & Are Still Friends Today
The All Stars competition was a very tight race, with Kelly Monaco and Valentin Chmerkovskiy placing third, Johnson and Hough in second, and Melissa Rycroft and Tony Dovolani taking home the ultimate glory.
Hough may have been really hard on Johnson at the time, but the formed a really close bond and are still friends more than a decade later.
The two linked up in February 2023 when Hough visited Johnson’s home and they actually recreated one of their dances, including the salsa and the Bhangra, from that season. Johnson shared some of the videos on her Instagram account.
“DWTS All- Star Champions right there. Wait. Haha,” Hough commented on one of the posts. Johnson’s husband, Andrew East, even got in on the action and dozens of fans suggested he compete on an upcoming season of the dance competition show.
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